Missing Operating System?
 

To say today has sucked would be an understatement.

On top of a bunch of other stuff, I got this error msg when doing a hard boot:

Missing Operating System:

Mind you, I had just done another hard boot not 10 minutes before that, and hadn't went anywhere on the net between boots.

If I put in the cd that came with the computer, and do not hit a key to have it boot from the cd, it will start windows.

I'm in the process of doing a full backup right now in case I have to reformat.

Does anyone have a clue what might have caused this or how I can fix it?

Otherwise, it does nothing.

Most likly a virus has caused this. You can use the windows to go into the emgerncy recovery and there is an option fixboot try that should fix it if not try the other two fix options and you should be fine.

Master boot record is corrupted . Fix it ...

just a standard pc? or do u have a raid setup?

try disconnecting the cable from the drive to the momma board and reconnect it snuggly. check for loose connections. startup.
I had the same problem on my raid 0 and i just pulled off the sata cables and put them back on and bam, all good. its worth a shot.
duke

Are you duel booting? Or is it single boot? Like directfiesta said, your MBR (Master Boot Record) is likely fluffed.

I just have a standard pc. And trust me, it's best if I don't go anywhere near the momma board. I'm not good with hardware. :)

I'll try the fixboot and fixing the master boot record. Hopefully one of them will work.

Thanks guys! :)

My SATA hard drives are no longer considered primary drives if I plug a USB hard drive into my box. Same error. TUrn off USB hard drive, problem fixed.

I have had two computer do that, both times the hard drive was dying

bad hard disk

I have a feeling the hd maybe dead

Tech Support
 

Sometimes the MBR might get messed up, however if you ever had linix or unix on a hard drive and you do a low and high level format on it, sometimes when using windows utilities it does not wipe the hard drive completely clean; will for some reason leave hidden or unmovable partitions which will do some funky things to your system !!! I had this problem many time in the past...

If this is not the case then It could be that you might need to get a new battery for your motherboard because the CMOS/BIOS requires such to be change ever year or so... When you fail to replace it you will have your computer go through the requirement of having you manually update the CMOS/BIOS because your computer can't find the stored info to run your computer. Such controls your harddrive, CD/DVD Rom drives and much more... If your battery is going or has gone on you... you can replace it for just a few dollars...

Sometimes when a power supply is older or is under powered for your computer system there will be problems !!!

Besides being a nasty virus, the only other thing I can think of is that your harddrive is going on you.

Good luck !!!